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Monday, April 13, 2009

The Edward C. Simpson Antiquarian Book Auction, 22nd April 2009

"One of the most significant private collections of rare books in Australasia is about to go under the hammer in Wellington. The collection includes a page from one of the world's first printed books and manuscripts that are nearly 1,000 years old. The books are so valuable; they are kept under lock and key. "We're talking old books and really significant from the 12th 13th century on through to the 18th century," says Anthony Gallagher, Dunbar Sloane Auction House. The books have survived plagues, book burnings and bloody wars. One of the oldest books in the collection is a Persian manuscript, written in 1059, making the pages nearly 1000 years old. Before settling in Wellington, the collection's late owner Ted Simpson was a librarian at England's John Rylands Library which holds one of Europe's best collections of rare books."